The Decameron Performance

After seeing the Decameron performance this past Saturday. I was able to finally get a visual of what we've been organizing since the start of the semester. I enjoyed watching the show and hearing the actors reveal their feelings and experiences. Having the Kinects not work the way I knew they could was a bit disappointing but the fact that they can be tweaked and eventually work in a future performance is exciting. I think the performance was a good dry run and with the necessary adjustments could be extremely innovative. The vote of reassurance from the gentleman at the end was also very nice.

When I think of ways the American Decameron could have been improved the first thing that comes to mind is that there was no distinction between the stories that were fiction and the ones that were nonfiction. For some people their personal accounts meant a lot to them, with that being said I don't think someone want their real life accounts to be mistaken as fiction or have their very serious non fiction account followed by a comedic story. Another thing I think could improve the show would be a better incorporation of the songs sung. I think if the songs were in someway a clue to the audience of the theme of the upcoming stories it would give the a greater sense of organization. For example when the Etta James song was sung about love, The story about the valentines and the Brazilian girls could have been told after wards.

Overall I enjoyed being a part of the Decameron and I definitely think the show should be attempted again with the Spring section of THR 403. The increased understanding of the Kinects will allow the next class to rehearse longer and as a result turn out and even better show than we put on.

Stock Footage: Color Lights Theme

Stock Footage: Calm Color Theme

Here's some colors to set the mood and transition to other colors for mood changes

Stock Footage: Techno/Psychedelic Theme

Stock Footage: Sunset Theme

Theme for those actors looking to set a calming mood or maybe those actors who will be singing

Stock Footage: Fire/Explosion Theme

Footage for those performers who requested a fire theme or mood that depicts anger

Stock Footage: Pink Collar Theme

Here's a theme for the actors performing pink collar related works

Stock Footage: Social Network Theme

Some stock footage for those Decameron actors who are performing pieces related to social networking.

Potential Decameron Stock Footage

Here's some footage from an old Michael Jackson video. The Decameron has performers of all races and religions with a variety of stories to tell. I think this footage embodies what we want to portray in the Decameron.

My Man/Woman Theory

As I prepare to leave Stony Brook I feel the need to recap on something I've come to learn and realize. When it comes to the topic of long term relationships and commitment men and women thought process and reasoning on the subject are completely different. Women to feel with gut and heart and can readily commit to long term to relationship that they feel has potential. Men on the other hand work by an essential trail and error system. A man can readily admit that a particular woman is perfect for him in the long term but he will most likely need to convince himself of that thought by involving himself with other women in order to have a mean of comparison against the woman he feels could be right for him.

Its important for women to realize that its somewhat important for a man to work on that trail and error basis even though on some levels its unfair to a female who doesn't needs a means of comparison for the man she loves. Unfortunately committing to monogamy is a painful thought to a man, but with enough experiences with other women he will most likely grow to realize that a certain female is right for him. If a woman tries to speed up or cut short a mans trail and error phase she will only be hurting herself in the long term. A man will grow to internally resent the woman he is with because she didn't allow him to naturally and independently relieve himself of his need to test out what type of woman fits best with him, even if the woman that best fits him is the one who cut his trail and error phase short.

I personally can understand the perspective and feeling of both men and women on this topic and even feel slightly sorry for women, because at some point in life I would like to have a daughter and I would hate for her to have to experience a mans trail and error phase.

Physics Textures

Some textures I captured around SBU.

Death & Sleep: The misconception

"I never sleep, cause sleep is the cousin of death". "Life is the bitch, and death is her sister sleep is the cousin, what a family picture you know father time, we all know mother nature it's all in the family, but I am of no relation". The latter is two quotes that imply that death is in close relation to sleep. In a very literal sense the two are similar in that the eyes are closed and there's a very decreased sense of whats going around you but in my opinion that's where I feel the comparisons end. If I had to compare something to death it would be a coma or unconsciousness.

I guess my biggest reason for my disagreement is that the recommendation for many health ailments is rest. When someone is stressed or looking unhealthy many times doctors recommend increased sleep. I give examples because both examples use sleep as a method for energizing and recovering one's self. Death or dying on the other hand is the rapid lost of energy with the chances of recovery unlikely.When I lay to sleep at night the last thing on my mind is the relief i made it to another night to actually be able to sleep. Its when I wake the next morning that I am concerned as to whether death will come during my day. As for those people who may die in their sleep, I doubt they go to bed with the intentions of dying but with intention of waking with a renewed energy.

In essence I feel looking at death in relation to sleep is somewhat of a pessimistic outlook on life in general. In general life is disturbing and hectic but I'd like to think that peace and relaxation of sleep doesn't have the notion of my funeral looming nearby each time my head hits my pillow.

My Age Theory

Some time ago I got into a heated discussion about how we as humans are aged. Currently a person is born on a certain date and that date is considered your birth date. A year following that date a person is said to be a year old. On the surface this ideology seems pretty cut and dry but I felt as if it was flawed in some ways. Nine months is the amount of time we recognize that it takes for a baby to be born. We also recognize that a living baby can be born on a premature basis before those nine months. With that being so its obvious that a person is capable of living before the allotted nine months. Why is though that we consider a nine month old human to be only a year old when a birthday comes around.

Its obvious that society clearly dates age from the time a human is actually born, but could it be done otherwise?. Why aren't we considered a year old 3 months after the date of birth in the case of babies born after 9 months. Or simply just considered a year old after what ever the difference in months is between the amount of months at which you were born and 12 months. Though it may seem minuscule in its nature, perhaps if we aged ourselves correctly, our development would come along differently. Maybe we would be more advanced due to the fact that youth would be brought along differently.

In essence I believe there could be some truth in what I feel. Many cultures hold their children to a high standard at very young ages. Here in America the baby is admired and often given much idle time. Interestedly enough though there are whole segments on American television shows dedicated to highlighting kid "geniuses" who may not be geniuses at all just simply children immersed in knowledge at an accelerated pace.

Outweighed Mistakes

I've recently been giving a listening ear to my friends, and there seems to be this reoccurring theme of regretting past mistakes. I then find myself telling them that with each mistake comes a lesson and therefore each mistake is a like short term curse that becomes a long term gift that comes in the form of a lesson that enables them to not make the same folly twice. I say this to them because it reassures them and I believe it has a lot of truth to it. The problem is that recently I found myself asking if there are some instances where the lesson learned just simply wasn't substantial enough in relation to the mistake and its immediate effects.

I personally have made many bad mistakes and have found that the severity of many of them correlates with my stubborn nature. The simplest life lesson often becomes magnified when your too stubborn to actually take heed to it. I wonder if I was a little more open would the essential side effects of my mistakes have been lessened. Naturally I'll never know the answer to that notion but I've chosen to put it into practice more often and then see what happens. There is no unit of measure for mistakes aside from maybe big and small, but there's always the external effects of such mistakes. What may have been perceived as a personal small mistake may have effected someone on a much larger scale.

All in all if I had to put this all into an analogy I'd say I wouldn't want to spend $100 on a $10 piece of merchandise. Yes I still receive the merchandise and its benefits but at a lost of $90 and more importantly a lost that could have went towards a lot of other things in the mean time.

America and It's Monothiestic Polytheism

With Easter upon us I figured I'd speak on something that I found interesting. In America the dominant religion is monotheism based around one God. In America they also have created holiday characters such as Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. These characters are pushed mainly to kids and are often used to convince them to behave or just simply have something to look forward to when a holiday comes around. What I also realized though is that these characters possess characteristics and abilities that are associated with God's abilities. I then questioned, does America promote a subliminal sense of polytheism in order to promote capitalism.

The time of Christmas and Easter promotes millions of dollars in revenue annually and contributes to the economy. I believe the creation of these characters keeps the money essentially rolling in. What many people don't see is that alot of individuals spend beyond their means when these holidays come around. They look to satisfy everyone in what has been deemed the Christmas or Holiday spirit. In addition its the Godly traits instilled in the characters surrounding these holidays that reassures people when they attempt to use common sense and realize these are single days out a long year, why should go broke over them. I think if people used that reasoning the country and government would be very concerned and do all it could to restore "faith" in the characters.

There is a reason why at some point parents reveal to their kids that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny aren't real. I personally think its because the work has been done and while they may know they aren't real they have had instilled in them in a way that will instinctively make them pass it on to their children and thus continue the cycle of capitalism.

A Mid Summers Nightmare

I recall a day last summer when my world got turned upside down. I was in a rocky relationship with a female that we'll call Kate. Kate was mysterious person by nature and that trait about her drove me crazy at times. Its seemed as if she was unfaithful because of her secretive text messages, silenced phone, and tendency to screen her phone calls. Despite pressing her on her action she denied all allegations and so would I for some time, but that relief was always only temporary. It was on a simple summer night in which I just looked to enjoy the company of my friends that my relief would be blown out the water.

You see Kate worked in Times Square so It wasn't uncommon for me to be around her job unintentionally. More over she worked very late hours that went in the AM hours. One day while heading to the train station to go home. The summer got interesting. Kate's job was on the block of the train station, and as a result I came across a guy whose face I noticed. I was baffled at first but then realized he was guy who'd liked kate and often made advances at her. He was trolling the area of her job in what looked to be an attempt to set up a coincidental meeting with her. After waiting a while though he gave up, but no sooner than he left then Kate come out her job accompanied but another guy.When she saw me she introduced the guy and claimed he was a friend, but in my mind I was already convinced that this was all the proof I needed. That day for me was every guys nightmare and for me it was a breaking point.

In retrospect that night was horrible but it toughened my skin to a new level.Kate's actions helped my realize my inner most wants from other people and gave me a greater sense of self. It was painful beyond belief but I think everyone needs a Kate-like situation. So all in Thank You Kate!

SBU Fox Hunt: Fiction Film

Spontaneous Monotony

When I first arrived at college I was excited about the unlimited possibilities. I was enamored with idea of doing something new everyday and meeting new people who also were in love with the bevy of things to do. I felt college possessed a great sense of spontaneity that wouldn't leave me with any dull moments. 4 years later and many reality checks later I found that spontaneity is indeed good for daily life but for the most part this a great monotony in life and monotony is what is ultimately respected in our society.

I sometimes find myself angry at the monotony of life but at the same time long for it. When looking at many of aspects it is monotony that people look for. For college students a respectable g.p.a is in connection to a monotony related to getting consistent good grades. In the work place some employees see the monotony of marriage as a gauge of someones consistency in behavior. Even in sports a constant respectable avg of points determines the great players. Ive found that I ultimately would like spontaneity in my life that is monotonous. When I say this I mean I want a consistency in those I am indulging in spontaneity with.

I've that spontaneous monotony is what I desire because in constant spontaneity there lacks a common theme. I believe that lack of a common theme leads us to eventually longing for monotony but not necessarily wanting to give up the spontaneous lifestyle. I've concluded that we want that certain something or individuals who are always present no matter what we dabble in.

Possible Decameron Concept

This series of HP commercials came out some time ago but I found them very nice when I first saw them. Given our use of the Kinect in America Decameron I think the actors could possibly emulate the concept of the commercial in Decameron while telling the stories from our blogs.

Moving Texture & Color

Some textures I recorded over the weekend